Apr. 20, 2014
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President Obama speaks at the White House on April 17. / Carolyn Kaster, AP

by Aamer Madhani, USA TODAY

by Aamer Madhani, USA TODAY

President Obama heads to Asia this week with the goal of making clear to allies that he's serious about the United States sharpening its focus on the region.

The eight-day trip - which Obama will begin after a brief stop Tuesday in Washington state to meet with the families and first responders affected by last month's deadly mudslide - will take him to Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines. Each of those countries is embroiled in territorial disputes with China over islands and waters in the South and East China Seas.

The trip comes as America's Pacific allies carefully watch the situation unfolding in Ukraine and wonder how Obama's response to Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula might affect Beijing'sstrategy in territorial disputes with its neighbors.

National security adviser Susan Rice dismissed the notion that China could be emboldened by Russia's annexation of Crimea and support of pro-Russia militants within Ukraine. She highlighted Obama's long-stated goal of pivoting U.S. foreign policy toward Asia.

"We have been talking with them about the importance of a strong international front to uphold principles that they and we all hold dear: the sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations, the need for peaceful resolution of disputes," Rice said. "And we will continue to have that discussion throughout each of the stops on our trip. And I think it's fair to say that Japan and South Korea, major global economies, will - as we have had to - continue to reassess the implications of what has transpired in Ukraine for their economic and diplomatic relationships, and particularly with Russia."

The United States says it won't take a stance on long-running territorial disputes in Asia, but it has called on China and neighbors to come to a peaceful resolution over their differences.

Japan and China are at odds over Beijing's claim to the Japan-administered Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. China calls the uninhabited islands Diaoyu and has repeatedly sent its ships near them, drawing protest from Japan.

The United States has admonished China for establishing an air defense zone over the East China Sea last year in areas that overlap zones operated by Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. In the South China Sea, China disputes the sovereignty of a number of islets with countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia. Last month, China interfered with Philippine ships approaching a Philippine-administered shoal, prompting Manila to protest the activity.

Christopher Johnson, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said it is a misread of Chinese strategic thinking to conclude that the Ukraine situation will motivate Beijing to take bold action in territorial disputes. The Ukraine crisis, however, adds a layer to President Xi Jingping's calculations about how to properly balance his country's relationship with Washington and Moscow, which leaned more toward the United States during the tenure of his two predecessors.

"I think that what we should all be watching from the Crimea episode with regard to China is what it means for China's relationship with Russia and how they view the Russian relationship as a sort of card in the triangular relationship between ourselves, China and Russia," Johnson said. "I think there's a very strong debate in senior levels in the Chinese government over the amount to which they should be sort of leaning toward the Russians."

This month, Daniel Russel, assistant secretary of State of East Asian and Pacific affairs, said during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing that retaliatory sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States and European Union after the Crimea annexation have had a "chilling effect on anyone in China who might contemplate the Crimea annexation as a model."

"The net effect is to put more pressure on China to demonstrate that it remains committed to the peaceful resolution of the problems," Russel said.

The extended visit to Asia is a makeup by Obama to Pacific leaders after he canceled a scheduled trip to the region last fall, so he could remain in Washington to deal with the government shutdown.

On the trip, Obama will be honored during formal state dinners hosted by Japanese Emperor Akihito and Philippine President Benigno Aquino.

Some of the other highlights of the trip will include tours by Obama of the Meiji shrine in Tokyo and the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, as well as a visit in the Philippines to the manufacturer of an electronic vehicle known as the Comet.

Obama will deliver remarks to U.S. and Filipino servicemembers at Fort Bonifacio, the national headquarters of the Philippine army.